You know, “There are enduring illusions that come with our intuitions” perfectly captures why we keep making the same mental mistakes. It’s all about the stubborn confidence our gut feelings give us, even when they’re wrong. This idea is the absolute bedrock of understanding behavioral economics and our own flawed decision-making.
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Meaning
Our gut feelings and snap judgments are often wrong, but they feel so right and convincing that we believe them over and over again.
Explanation
Look, here’s the thing I’ve seen play out a thousand times. Kahneman is talking about System 1 thinking – that fast, automatic, and *effortless* part of your brain. It’s fantastic for most daily tasks. But it’s also riddled with biases and heuristics, these mental shortcuts. The “enduring illusions” are the false sense of confidence and correctness that these intuitions create. They feel true, so we trust them, even in the face of contradictory evidence. It’s why an initial impression of someone can be so hard to shake, or why a stock pick just “feels” right despite the data saying otherwise. The illusion is the feeling of certainty itself.
Quote Summary
| Context | Attributes |
|---|---|
| Original Language | English (3668) |
| Category | Wisdom (385) |
| Topics | illusion (22), intuition (17), judgment (32) |
| Literary Style | minimalist (442) |
| Emotion / Mood | reflective (382) |
| Overall Quote Score | 77 (179) |
Origin & Factcheck
This quote comes straight from Daniel Kahneman’s 2011 magnum opus, “Thinking, Fast and Slow,” which was published after decades of research, primarily conducted with his late partner Amos Tversky. It’s a cornerstone of his Nobel Prize-winning work. You won’t find it falsely attributed to others; this is pure, undiluted Kahneman, born from rigorous psychological study.
Attribution Summary
| Context | Attributes |
|---|---|
| Author | Daniel Kahneman (54) |
| Source Type | Book (4032) |
| Source/Book Name | Thinking, Fast and Slow (54) |
| Origin Timeperiod | 21st Century (1892) |
| Original Language | English (3668) |
| Authenticity | Verified (4032) |
Author Bio
Dr Daniel Kahneman transformed how we think about thinking. Trained in Israel and at UC Berkeley, he built a career spanning Hebrew University, UBC, UC Berkeley, and Princeton. His partnership with Amos Tversky produced prospect theory and the heuristics-and-biases program, culminating in the Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences. He engaged broad audiences through bestselling books and practical frameworks for better decisions. He continued writing and advising late into life, leaving ideas that shape economics, policy, medicine, and management. If you want to dive deeper, start with the Dr Daniel Kahneman book list and explore his enduring insights.
| Official Website
Where is this quotation located?
| Quotation | There are enduring illusions that come with our intuitions |
| Book Details | Publication Year: 2011; ISBN: 9780374275631; Latest Edition: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2013; Number of pages: 499. |
| Where is it? | Part I: Two Systems, Chapter 2: Attention and Effort, Approximate page 41 (2013 edition) |